Indonesia denounces Israel ‘propaganda’ banner over Gaza hospital ruins

Published April 22, 2026
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike near the Indonesian Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, on Nov 12, 2023. — Reuters/File
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike near the Indonesian Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, on Nov 12, 2023. — Reuters/File

Indonesia on Wednesday accused Israel of flying a “propaganda” banner over the ruins of a hospital that had been built in Gaza with Indonesian funding.

The Indonesia Hospital, in the north of the Gaza Strip near the fortified border with Israel, was opened in late 2015 after Indonesia’s Medical Emergency Rescue Committee, a humanitarian NGO, raised approximately $7.3 million in donations for its construction, according to state news agency Antara.

It has since been destroyed, and Jakarta on Wednesday objected to the raising of a banner over the ruins that alluded to Israel’s 12-day “Rising Lion” military operation against Iran last year.

“The use of military symbols and propaganda over the ruins of a destroyed hospital, especially when linked to a specific military operation, is a highly provocative act and cannot be justified,” the foreign ministry said in a statement posted on X.

“This act is an insult to a humanitarian facility built from the solidarity of the Indonesian people for the Palestinian people.”

The ministry said all medical facilities “must be respected and protected” under international humanitarian law and called on Israel to cease actions that endanger civilian infrastructure.

In 2023, Indonesia denied an Israeli claim that the hospital sat atop a network of Hamas tunnels.

Opinion

Editorial

JAAC ban
Updated 07 Jun, 2026

JAAC ban

Though the JAAC’s demands are open to scrutiny, banning any political organisation — as long as it remains committed to peaceful activism — is undemocratic.
GB election
Updated 07 Jun, 2026

GB election

It is important that whichever party ultimately forms the government puts the needs of the people of GB above everything else.
ODI win
07 Jun, 2026

ODI win

AT last, the Pakistan cricket team had something to celebrate: a One-day International series victory against...
Trump rebuked
Updated 06 Jun, 2026

Trump rebuked

OBSERVERS across the world have long questioned the utility of Donald Trump’s now three-month-old war on Iran. But...
Hostile water motives
06 Jun, 2026

Hostile water motives

INDIA’S latest move to advance the Chenab-Beas Link Tunnel Project and its plan to flush silt from the Salal Dam...
Polio progress
06 Jun, 2026

Polio progress

PAKISTAN’S latest sub-national polio campaign offers encouraging evidence that the country can still push back...